Jean Allard, 1924-2012

Jean Allard was the first female partner at the law firm of Sonnenschein Nath & Rosenthal and, along with former University of Chicago President Hanna Holborn Gray, was among the first women to become members of the exclusive Chicago Club.

In 1979, Ms. Allard helped start and became the first chairwoman of the Chicago Network, an organization of influential local women. Her motivation in launching the group was to foster the idea of women helping women, said MarySue Barrett, a member of the Chicago Network who succeeded Ms. Allard as president of the Metropolitan Planning Council in 1996.

"She founded it because she was doing it, and she wanted to recruit others to do the same," Barrett said.

Ms. Allard, 87, a former Hyde Park resident, died Sunday, Jan. 29, in the Buckingham Pavilion nursing and rehabilitation center in Chicago, following a long illness, said her niece Patricia John.

She was a mentor to countless professionals, including Valerie Jarrett, a senior adviser to President Barack Obama. Jarrett met Ms. Allard in 1983 while an associate at Sonnenschein.

"She took me under her wing," Jarrett said. "Were it not for Jean Allard, I would certainly not be where I am today."

Donald Lubin, partner and former chairman of Sonnenschein (now SNR Denton), said Ms. Allard made her way up in the world despite the many obstacles in the way for women.

"Jean came of age in an era where women were restricted in the clubs they could join or the business transactions they could take on, the positions they could achieve," Lubin said.

"There was a very definite glass ceiling that existed, and Jean was able to break through, not only for herself, but to open the opportunity for many other women."

Among the many barriers Ms. Allard broke through was entry into the previously all-male Chicago Club in 1982.

Born Jean McGuire in Trenton, Mo., Ms. Allard earned a law degree from the University of Chicago in 1953 and worked as an antitrust lawyer in the city before moving to Ohio. She returned to Chicago in the 1960s and was general counsel for auto parts manufacturer Maremont Corp. before becoming one of the first women to serve as vice president at the University of Chicago.

Ms. Allard joined Sonnenschein Nath & Rosenthal as a partner in 1976, and became known for her skills as a legal tactician. She retired from the firm in 1991.

"She was able to break through in many situations because of her capability as a lawyer and as a person," Lubin said.

"Jean was a groundbreaker for women, period, but she always had a very strong ability at the strategic level," said Hill Hammock, retired chief executive officer of LaSalle Bank. "She always saw the big picture and didn't get lost in the trees, and was able to sort things out and communicate them in a way that made sense."

Ms. Allard sat on the board at LaSalle Bank, Commonwealth Edison Co. and Marshall Field & Co. In 1987, she made a list of Chicago's 10 most powerful women compiled by the Chicago Tribune.

Her greatest interest, perhaps, was helping ensure the future success of young members of Chicago's business community, and in particular, the many women she mentored.

"Leadership to me is the effective use of your own time and the time of others in a goal-oriented task," Allard told the Tribune in 1987. "Women have not acquired the wealth, so leadership becomes a more effective measure of importance."

Ms. Allard was well known for the dinner and cocktail parties she threw in her home, which formed valuable networking opportunities for young professionals.

"She made time for countless people across the city that she considered her friend and was always willing to stop and take the time to be a friend," Jarrett said. "And in that sense, not only is she a role model for her extraordinary accomplishments, but she's a role model for how to treat people when you've reached the pinnacle of success."

Her first marriage ended in divorce. Her second husband, David Gooder, died in 2006.